Brownlow Reflection 02/10/15

Author: Rush Limbaugh
Title:"The News 'Narrative' is Everywhere"
Publication:The Rush Limbaugh show
Date: February 10, 2015
Link: http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2015/02/10/the_news_narrative_is_everywhere 

       Okay, so I know it's kind of lame to pick an article that actually has the word "narrative" in it, and this one is actually a transcript from a television show, but this one is pretty interesting. Essentially, Limbaugh comments on the recent popularity of the word "narrative" in journalism discussions. Here, he is referring to the Brian Williams scandal, the stream of articles dispelling narratives about Guantanamo Bay, Katrina, and so on. He gets pretty heated in his discussion and essentially attempts to blame liberalism for the "myth" that news is actually news. He claims that liberal agendas are what have created the narrative formula behind t.v. journalism, and that the sudden interest in the narrative is a result of conservatives finally taking a stand. His definition of narrative seems to be pretty broad. He alternatively refers to it as a myth, a story, a formula, an agenda, and a "misremembering," (obviously quoting the Brian Williams scandal). 
         What's most interesting is that, above all, he seems to believe that a narrative is an agenda. Of course, if we go by his definition, then he is actually creating his own narrative in order to place blame for slanted news reporting on liberal journalists. It's fascinating to see how the new found popularity of the word "narrative" has become synonymous with agenda. Although narrative clearly follows formulas, and, as we have discussed, each narrative element and building block serves a purpose, I'm not entirely sure that attributing a blanket title of "agenda" is beneficial to understanding the ways in which narrative is used, whether in literature or in journalism.